Biography
McAlister was born in Nashville, Tennessee. After graduation from Vanderbilt University law school in 1897, he was admitted to the bar. He served as Assistant City Attorney in Nashville in 1901 and as City Attorney from 1904 to 1910.
He was later elected to the Tennessee State Senate (1911-1915) and subsequently elected by the General Assembly to a total five terms as State Treasurer (1919–1927 and 1931–1933). After failing twice to achieve the Democratic nomination for governor, he received it in 1932 during his final term as Treasurer.
McAlister's election occurred at the depths of the Great Depression, on the same day that Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected President of the United States. He favored most of Roosevelt's New Deal measures, especially the Tennessee Valley Authority and labor reforms, including unemployment compensation. Reelected in 1934, McAlister incurred the enmity of powerful Memphis political "boss" E. H. Crump and did not seek a third term in 1936.
He retired to his home in Nashville, and maintained a relatively low profile in his later years. McAlister was appointed as a federal referee in bankruptcy cases in 1940, and served in that position til his death. He was also a member of the Nashville Civitan Club.
Read more about this topic: Hill McAlister
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